Homeowners insurance usually doesn’t cover tree removal. However, it may cover tree removal if:
- The tree falls on your home, garage, or fence due to a covered peril
- The tree is blocking your driveway
- The tree falls due to a covered event, like a windstorm, lightning, vandalism, or explosion
What is Included in House Insurance Coverage?
House insurance, also known as homeowners insurance, is a type of property insurance that protects your home and personal belongings from various risks, such as fire, theft, vandalism, and weather-related events. House insurance typically covers three main aspects:
- Property damage: This covers the cost of repairing or replacing your home and other structures on your property, such as a garage, a shed, or a fence, if they are damaged by a covered peril. Some common perils that are covered by house insurance are fire, lightning, windstorm, hail, explosion, smoke, vandalism, and theft. However, some perils that are not covered by house insurance are flood, earthquake, landslide, and war.
- Personal liability: This covers the legal expenses and damages that you may have to pay if you or a member of your household are found liable for injuring someone or damaging their property. For example, if a visitor slips and falls on your icy driveway, or if your dog bites your neighbor, your personal liability coverage will help you pay for their medical bills and legal fees.
- Additional living expenses: This covers the extra costs that you may incur if you have to temporarily move out of your home due to a covered loss. For example, if your home is uninhabitable after a fire, your additional living expenses coverage will help you pay for your hotel, food, and transportation costs until your home is repaired or rebuilt.
Is Tree Removal Covered by House Insurance?
Tree removal is a service that involves cutting down, hauling away, and disposing of a fallen or damaged tree. Tree removal can be expensive, depending on the size, location, and condition of the tree. The average cost of tree removal in the United States is about $700, but it can range from $150 to $2,000 or more.
So, is tree removal covered by house insurance? The answer is it depends. There are three main factors that determine whether your house insurance will cover the cost of tree removal:
- The cause of the tree falling: Your house insurance will only cover the cost of tree removal if the tree fell due to a covered peril, such as windstorm, lightning, fire, or vandalism. If the tree fell due to a non-covered peril, such as flood, earthquake, or disease, your house insurance will not cover the cost of tree removal. Additionally, if the tree fell due to your negligence, such as failing to maintain or prune the tree, your house insurance may deny your claim for tree removal.
- The limit of your coverage: Your house insurance will only cover the cost of tree removal up to a certain limit, which is usually a percentage of your dwelling coverage. For example, if your dwelling coverage is $300,000 and your tree removal limit is 5%, your house insurance will cover up to $15,000 for tree removal. However, if the cost of tree removal exceeds your limit, you will have to pay the difference out of your pocket.
- The damage caused by the tree: Your house insurance will only cover the cost of tree removal if the tree caused damage to your home, other structures, or a neighbor’s property. If the tree did not cause any damage, or if it fell on a vacant land, your house insurance will not cover the cost of tree removal. However, some house insurance policies may offer a small amount of coverage for tree removal even if there is no damage, as a courtesy or a preventive measure.
What You Can Do to Ensure Tree Removal is Covered?
Tree removal can be a costly and complicated process, and you may not want to deal with it on your own. Therefore, it is important to know what you can do to ensure that tree removal is covered by your house insurance, or at least reduce the risk of having to pay for it yourself. Here are some tips that you can follow:
Regular Maintenance of Trees on your Property
One of the best ways to prevent tree-related problems is to keep your trees healthy and well-maintained. You should inspect your trees regularly for signs of disease, decay, or damage, and prune them as needed to remove dead or weak branches. You should also hire a professional arborist or tree service to assess the condition and stability of your trees, especially if they are large, old, or near your home or power lines. By taking care of your trees, you can reduce the chances of them falling or causing damage to your property or others.
Consult with your Insurance Agent
Another way to ensure that tree removal is covered by your house insurance is to consult with your insurance agent and review your policy. You should ask your agent about the specifics of your coverage, such as what perils are covered, what limits apply, and what exclusions or conditions exist. You should also ask your agent if there are any discounts or endorsements that you can add to your policy to increase your coverage or lower your premium. For example, some insurance companies may offer a discount if you install a lightning rod on your property, or an endorsement that covers the cost of tree removal regardless of the cause or damage.
Consider Adding Supplemental Coverage for Tree Removal
If your house insurance does not provide adequate coverage for tree removal, or if you want to have more peace of mind, you may want to consider adding supplemental coverage for tree removal. Supplemental coverage is an optional coverage that you can purchase separately from your house insurance, or as an add-on to your existing policy. Supplemental coverage for tree removal can provide more benefits, such as covering the cost of tree removal for any reason, covering the cost of tree removal beyond your limit, or covering the cost of tree removal even if there is no damage. However, supplemental coverage for tree removal may also have higher premiums, deductibles, or exclusions, so you should compare the costs and benefits before buying it.
